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Overall rating: 4/5
Director: Roman Polanski
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston
Tagline: A noirish Nicholson sticks his nose where it doesn’t belong.
The Film: This is a classic, a historically inspired period piece by
screenwriter Robert Towne, with Jack Nicholson as a private detective in the early 1930s. Polanski chooses not to imitate the high-key lighting effects that made film noir so distinctive in its day, letting the script and actors including
legendary noir director John Houston set the tone. You can feel that story was cut out to keep this at a manageable length, but it’s still brilliant.
Rating: 4/5
The DVD: Looks good in widescreen format, but the sound, despite being Dolby 5.1 Surround (or restored mono option) is a little unsatisfying, with the score overpowering voice and sound effects. For features, you get little, but more than with most films of this era. The original trailer is included, as is a
brief featurette in which Polanski, Towne and producer Robert Evans discuss the making of the film.
Rating: 3/5
Easter Eggs: Nope. You were lucky to get the featurette.
Five Degrees of Seperation
The Two Jakes — The sequel most say doesn’t measure up
The Grifters — Has a Houston in it, and is dark, sharp and
brilliant
The Shining — Another instance of a brilliant filmmaker working with the amazing Nicholson.
Bitter Moon — Polanski does the dark side of love in the blackest of comedies
The Ninth Gate — Polanski with Johnny Depp, another mystery, with a dash of the occult
